Pop Up Chapel, another point of view

by Chelsea Harris, Universal Life Church Monastery, guest writer for Kaptur talking about her personal Pop Up Chapel experience...

I read about the Pop Up Chapel and I knew I had to go. I didn’t care if it was in New York and I was in Seattle, if my boss wouldn’t send me I would pay for the trip myself.

You may be wondering why my boss would ever send me to 24 gay weddings in Central Park. The brief explanation is I work for the Universal Life Church Monastery. We ordain people to become ministers online, help them navigate the legal logistics of registering with the county clerk and even give them tips on how to write a wedding service. Rough work, considering I can’t marry the person I love in 44 states in the union, including my own.

However, for the gay community online ordinations are integral. Because of the religious exemptions in the Marriage Equality law, religious organizations don’t have to provide service to gay couples. Knowing this, I figured that the people performing these ceremonies were our ministers. So I looked them up, and they were right there in our database. Normally, our ministers are strangers; they become ordained, order products and we never meet them. This would be the first time I had ever seen a United Life Church minister in action.

I was blown away by their sincerity, by the beauty of their ceremonies. All thoughts of the necessity of seminary left my head and I know now that ministers are capable not because of their training but because of their intentions and I had more faith in my job than ever before.

Growing up gay in a conservative small town, I never thought this would be possible. I was convinced that for the rest of my life I would be hated for living my life exactly as everyone else did, happily in love. However, on this day with the hot sun beating down on me, I heard a bystander yell as a couple pulled away from their first married kiss that “the whole state of New York is so proud of you” and I did the only thing you could: I cried. Only instead of being tears of frustration and shame, they were my first gay tears of joy.

If you would like to perform weddings, gay or straight, please feel free to visit us at www.themonastery.org and see if it is a good fit.

Photos provided by Amanda Davidson.

Our Kaptur of a Celebration of Love by Pop Up Chapel and The Knot

What a beautiful day! The Kaptur Memory team was proud to be part of more same-sex marriage celebrations in NY this Saturday when 24 couples were married in Central Park right by the Merchant's Gate. Bex Schwarz, founder of the Pop Up Chapel and The Knot did an amazing job of pulling together this unique event in only 5 weeks and 2 days.

We created a special Kaptur Memory of the day and we'd love to have you be a part of it. If you were there, please add yourself to the Kaptur guest list and add your pictures to this growing collection of memories documented throughout the day. You can see our Kaptur here...



Everything was donated out of Love! Flowers, officiants, photographers, stylists, water, tissues and waterproof mascara were at the ready to make this day perfect for the 24 couples who were getting married. Rumor has it that the gift bags weighed over forty pounds full of great gifts like champagne and mini-wedding cakes.

There was a colorful rainbow chapel, designed by ICRAVE, where couples literally tied the knot and the "Kiss" chapel, designed by Z-A Studios, where 12 couples had their first kiss as a married couple.

There were so many cute tweets from the day, @KapturIt was having so much fun keeping up with all of the buzz...

@TaraAriano I keep seeing random people wander up, ask what's happening, learn about @popupchapel, and have identical happy reactions. It's nice.

@carleyroney Our very first couple married at today's @popupchapel with @theknot Bryn & Leila, congrats!! #DOMA http://lockerz.com/s/125036305

@starbex BEST DAY EVER! 24 same-sex marriages! 24 celebrations of equality! TOO MUCH CAFFEINE. #popupchapel

@girlie_bee A brother just bawled while his sister recited her vows. This is why I do this. This is why I love weddings. #popupchapel

@almagsalon: People celebrating love in central park! So happy to be part of this awesome day. #popupchapel http://twitpic.com/5yezxz

@CityCakes: CONGRATULATIONS to all of the beautiful couples who tied the knot in Central Park at @popupchapel !!! Hope you enjoyed your cupcakes - LOVE!

@popupchapel @starbex THE day has arrived! I walked outside into the glorious day and tears of joy and gratitude flowed already! yay!

So excited to volunteer @popupchapel today! Note to self: SKIP MASCARA #preemptivecrying

New York Loves Marriage Equality, introducing theKnot.com's Pop Up Chapel

We’re really excited about marriage equality in New York! I have a feeling you've probably noticed. This Saturday the Kaptur team will be out in full force again to show our excitement and support at the Pop Up Chapel in Central Park.

The lovely people at Pop Up Chapel and The Knot decided they wanted to do something special to commemorate marriage equality. They came up with this amazing idea to create the largest Pop Up Chapel in New York City and provide 24 couples with all of the wedding goodies they’d ever dreamed of. Why 24 couples? Well, since the Marriage Equality bill was passed on June 24th, the Pop Up Chapel organizers felt that '24' made perfect sense. We agree!

The lucky couples will have everything they desire for their special day - from the photographer, to the witness, to the post-wedding bubbly! Officiants are crafting custom ceremonies, City Cakes of Chelsea will be making complimentary cupcakes...yum! You name it, Pop Up Chapel has thought of it.

It's such a thoughtful idea and we can't wait to Kaptur it. We hope to see your memories of this one of a kind day in Central Park, add them to ours at Kaptur.com.

Celebrating Marriage Equality in NYC: July 24, 2011

The Kaptur team was on hand yesterday at the City Clerk's offices in Manhattan and Brooklyn as New York's Marriage Equality Act went into effect. What a day! It was beautiful, joyful and moving. We hope you enjoy the images we captured.

First couple wed in Manhattan under Marriage Equality Act!

After 23 years together, it was a sweet moment when a Chelsea couple exchanged "I do's" this morning on the first day same-sex marriage became legal in New York state.

Kaptur congratulates Phyllis Siegel, 76, and Connie Kopelov, 84 (seated) the first couple married this morning at the Manhattan City Clerk's office. Kaptur was on hand when the couple exited the building and raised their arms in victory to a cheering crowd.

"It was just so amazing,’’ Siegel said outside. ‘‘It’s the only way to describe it. I lost my breath and a few tears." She added: ‘‘This is the first day of the rest of our lives.’’

July 24, 2011 - Marriage Equality arrives in NY!

Today is the first day same-sex marriage is legal in the state of New York! Kaptur is excited to be on the scene in both Manhattan and Brooklyn today to witness the historic events. 823 couples entered a lottery to receive wedding permits in New York City today, and couples started lining up at 4:30 this morning to be the first to wed! Throughout the day we'll be bringing you some of the sights and sounds from the City Clerk's offices. Early this morning, couples on their way to get their marriage licenses in Manhattan were cheered on by crowds with rainbow colored umbrellas (blocking out the sun on this day of 90+ degree heat!).

Kaptur moves into a new office!

On Monday we moved...start up style! We walked (pushing office chairs along the bustling sidewalks of Manhattan) from our old office on the 25th floor of the Paramount building in the heart of Times Square to our current office on the 3rd floor of 450 W. 31st St. Our new home is located just between the new beer garden and food lot created by Tom Colicchio and one of FIT's dorms. Needless to say, things are a little different here. We've already enjoyed a few trips to the food trucks at lunch. There is also a pretty amazing view from the top of the building; apparently it is a popular place to host events or make music videos, as we learned early on when Beyoncé dropped by for an afternoon.

Monday's Idea We Love

One of the guilty pleasures of working in the Kaptur office is getting to see photos and videos from lots of amazing weddings. From time to time we'll be sharing some of the cool ideas and trends from real Kaptur weddings. Of course, we will only share pics or slideshows where the owner has given us permission, because we respect your privacy!

Here's an idea we love...Jenny's gorgeous short and chic wedding gown. It's unusual, but she makes it look both contemporary and classic at the same time. The short veil and pearls are 50's retro, but the lace peep-toe slingbacks are pure 2011. Perfection!

Weddings we wish we'd been invited to...Thailand edition

It's Friday, and here in the Kaptur office we're looking out at blue skies and daydreaming about the weddings we wish we'd been invited to...like this gorgeous wedding on the beach in Koh Samui, Thailand. Beautiful scenery, stunning bride and what looked like a very fun party! We love how the white and aqua pallette perfectly echoes the sand and sea surroundings.



Congrats, Ruth and Marty! And we'd love an invite for your next shindig!

Kaptur Kismet

Many thanks to Brideorama.com for the great shout out today for Kaptur. We really like the fresh and innovative wedding ideas on their blog. Kaptur came about because of a wedding, so we're excited to see Kaptur gaining traction in the weddings space. Kismet, anyone?

To see the full post on Brideorama.com, click here.

Upload to Kaptur!

You asked for it and we answered - you can now upload your favorite photos from your computer to create new albums or add photos to any existing album on Kaptur!!! This is a great way to allow you and your friends to contribute all of your awesome shots without needing to upload them to Facebook or Flickr first.

Head over to Kaptur.com and start uploading now!

Gigmasters Wedding Contest, Win $1500 in Wedding Luxuries

Looking to add some luxury to your wedding? Check out the Wedding Contest on Gigmasters for a chance to win $1500 in wedding luxuries. Prizes include a platinum membership from Greenvelope, a harpist to play at your wedding from Gigmasters, a $300 gift certificate to SmartBrideBoutique.com, cufflinks and money clips from The Man Registry, and a wedding veil from MayRey.

All you have to do is 'like' one of the participating companies on Facebook and you are entered to win. Check out the Gigmasters blog for more details: http://bit.ly/rdnp4d

Wedding trend: tech-savvy couples save money on wedding photos

An article today on SocialTechPop.com tells how social-media savvy couples can save money on their wedding by using...you guessed it - Kaptur! More couples are electing to have digital wedding albums vs. the traditional printed ones. Some are even skipping the photographer all together, and using their guests' pics to create a digital album of both posed and candid shots from the wedding. Kaptur is the only photo sharing application that lets you combine your pics with the photos and videos that your guests post on Facebook, Flickr, YouTube and more.

Here's a great example of a couple who combined their professional photos with candids from their guests (along with some pretty awesome music!) to create a fun Kaptur album (with thanks to the Schuylers for letting us share!):



Click here to see the full article.

KapturCards featured nationally on KGB Deals!

Visit KGBDeals.com now to get 50% off custom photo cards at KapturCards.com.

Why didn't I think of that? We did!

We've all come across something and thought, "why didn't I think of that?". We got a great shout-out today for Kaptur in Business Daily News as one of those ideas.

"Surely you've had it happen to you. Your friends post great pictures of you on their Facebook page, but the process of getting copies for yourself and assembling them in an album can be more work than it's worth. Kaptur.com uses a proprietary technology to automatically comb your social media contacts' pages and find pictures of your events and bring them to your Kaptur album."

Genius? We thought so...and nice to see that others agree!

Click here to read the full article.

New feature: enhanced suggestions!

We've enhanced Kaptur's ability to help you quickly discover and add your and your friends' photos. With our updated suggestions algorithm, once you enter a date and select the friends that were with you, we'll suggest a number of albums that we believe are relevant. As you select photos to add to your album, we'll continue to add relevant albums to the suggestions tab. This is particularly useful if you select a photo you were tagged in: once you pick the photo, just select the "suggested" tab and see other photos from the album. You can add an entire album without even opening it, or click to view the whole album and select individual photos.

We think that seeing all of your relevant albums in one place feels pretty magical and hope that you agree!

Traditional wedding albums - obsolete?

According to a survey by UK daily The Telegraph, "Nearly two-thirds of brides are ditching the traditional wedding album in favour of uploading all their pictures onto Facebook and other websites." Seems that a lot of couples are bypassing old school picture albums and keeping digital memories instead. Posting wedding photos on Facebook, Flickr or other social media sites means that a lot more family and friends actually get to see the pics. Kaptur takes this one step further by giving couples an easy way to see all the candid shots taken by their guests, and add them to their digital album. Best of both worlds, right?

Click here to read the full article.

The Wall Street Journal mentions Kaptur

The Wall St. Journal covered news of Kaptur's recent round of angel investment. Check it out here.

The Clampdown Shanghai

Check out the rock music scene in Shanghai on Kaptur:

Congratulations to Jeffrey and Jenny!

How does wedding music sound on the world largest outdoor pipe organ? Ask newlyweds Jeff and Jenny Yam.

Congratulations to Jeffrey and Jenny as they celebrated their beautiful wedding at the Spreckels Organ Pavilion in San Diego's Balboa Park last weekend, home to the worlds largest outdoor pipe organ. Even on his big day, Jeffrey's connections to Kaptur were strong enough for him to give us a mention when talking to Sign On San Diego blogger Maren Dougherty.

See shots of the wedding on Maren's blog post. Pure elegance.